A Night in Meridian
by Silmuen
Summary: Fledgling Raziel meets a mysterious but alluring adversary in Meridian. please RnR
1. Default Chapter

I know,I know.this is the line of least resistance. I posted this a long time ago.but it went in large blocks of text and was visually off-putting. Now I hope it is better. If you are patient enough you can read it again. It goes with small corrections too. I'm working hard on updating the Firstborn, but that mostly is deleting not writing.:P ........................................  
  
DISCLAIMER: I do not claim any EIDOS characters to be mine. Only Damaris belongs to me. :P This is not a continuation of Firstborn, just an episode that might have happened.  
  
A delicate shaft of light penetrated the thick darkness and softly slid across his face. Yellow irises contracted, eyes narrowed. A gust of wind swept down the street, bearing scents of the city...a scent of warm skin, life, blood...an odor of a human. A green lantern light fell on his face bringing it momentarily out of darkness. A shadow in shadow.  
  
Raziel, Kain's first born son was finally free of the exhausting drill of training his master and maker had devised for him. Having had completed nearly all the trials, he was free to explore new face of Nosgoth. Raziel was eager to see how it had changed through the millennium of his absence. From Nosgoth's lore he learnt that the city of Meridian was now Nosgoth's capital - its heart and home of the largest human community.  
  
Inexplicably, the night in Meridian stirred his deepest emotions. He was among humans once again, as he had been before, but this time as a night bred creature -a dangerous predator that came to destroy. The young vampire still could not become free of the self-loathing for what he had become. This deeply rooted emotion accompanied him, as he walked down a crowded street in Meridian, wearing a dark cloak and a hood pulled low over his eyes. He did not wish to inspire panic by revealing his vampiric features. Not yet.  
  
Meridian, Raziel discovered, was not only the living heart of humanity, but also the very cancer that corrupted it, for it was the heart of crime and sin. My presence only added to the dark splendor of the city. Meridian was an impressive sight -lit by thousands of torches and enveloped in an atmosphere of celebration. Streets were crowded with gaudily clad processions, theatre troupes and scantily clad dancers that seemed like red spirits inhabiting he human river that poured down the streets. Raziel inhaled the evening air- it bore a scent of decadence and sin...  
  
A girl clad in a red dress whirled around him -a blur of red. Flinging her arms around his neck, she kissed him passionately and danced away into the crowd. ....A touch of her warm skin- thin delicate layer that could be torn so easily... and the revulsion from the heat of life that fiercely emanated from her....  
  
She probably hadn't realized how cold his dead skin was. A sensation of upcoming thirst reeled in a corner of his mind. The city was intoxicating.  
  
"I have been watching you" A whisper in his mind -a female voice- soft and melodious, yet with a metallic edge to it. Raziel surveyed his surroundings but there was no one in sight. Confused, he proceeded down the hall, his gaze shifting from one ancient weapon to another. He stopped at an array of shields bearing rusted Sarafan emblems.  
  
"The abomination of the vampire race has finally arrived..." the voice echoed derisively in is mind, alerting him. Raziel tried to pierce the shadows with his gaze but the shadow he searched for did not appear. His sensitive hearing picked up a short quiet sound. He turned in that direction but there was only empty space, mocking him...  
  
"Your origin is a blasphemy to us, the Cabal, stranger." The voice was deep, reverberating with sweet female tones, but dulled by suppressed hatred. She was somewhere among the shadows, Raziel could almost smell her -a tempting, fascinating sensation. He hadn't expected that a resurrected corpse like his was able to provide him with such. Raziel quickly shook off his reverie and slowly pulled out his broadsword. The Sarafan in him was taking over.  
  
The vampire saw a shadow drop from a gallery above. Instantly, he followed. Before him, a dark-robed woman was standing, her hands on her hips.  
  
The haughty, aristocratic Damaris. His kind.  
  
"Begone, hell-child, or I 'll have to dispatch you myself!", she called provocatively. Raziel steeled himself, putting on his best air of self- confidence. "Mind your tongue, or I shall tear it out from your blasphemous mouth. I have nothing to fear from a Vorador's pet!". He shot back, weaving a strand of irony into the sentence.  
  
A wave of anger swept through him. He could only hold contempt for her. He should like to see her in Kain's claws...  
  
"Presumptuous, but charming." she returned the irony.  
  
"I am here to destroy you, filthy fledgling, make no mistake, though." She grimaced with anger.  
  
Raziel straightened and threw his shoulders back, posing self-confidence. The stage of taunting and insults was almost over. What next, he kept asking himself. "Try me then, milady. But I must warn you. This is not going to be an easy kill." Raziel -merely a fledgling and she an experienced vampiress -a trained assassin sent by Vorador to simply get rid of him, lord Kain's firstborn and in her eyes -the filth that Kain' dark magic had created. How humiliating. 


	2. chapter 2

*hah. The Firstborn is coming along nicely. In the meantime please enjoy the second chapter of this story. Mes hopes yus likes its.*  
  
Vorador. A legend incarnate. Demon and god. Raziel waited outside the house where the meeting was to take place. Nothing more than just a dilapidated building.  
  
The night's chill currents run down the street and touched his skin, making him tremble. He smiled slightly. Kain and Vorador. It was worth it to wait in damp cold weather he naturally abhorred, and endure a while of boredom just to see them together.. Raziel recalled the story of Vorador...the irritating debauchee who found the world no longer a mystery, so great was his knowledge.  
  
The conflict between Kain and Vorador was escalating...It was now a matter of time when the two "clans" started fighting each other. But it was Vorador who expressed a wish to "negotiate". Was he perhaps afraid that a war with Kain's sons would spoil the looks of his brides?  
  
Raziel went back into the building, following Kain's orders. Kain was stationed in a long hall flanked with wide brick pillars. Only Raziel was allowed to stand beside Kain during the meeting. The pillars cast long deep shadows, and he took his position behind one of them, completely hidden from view.  
  
And then, Vorador arrived accompanied by his escort, the vampiress Damaris.  
  
"So you have come, old friend, to beg me for mercy..."  
  
Kain's voice vibrated with irony. Vorador, however, didn't follow the provocation.  
  
"This is a matter of utmost importance and I would rather you gave it more serious thought, Kain. I have come to discuss peace."  
  
Raziel's attention was caught by a metallic glint at Damaris's hand. He strained his eyes to see what it was. Stealthily, he moved from behind the pillar and crept up to the vampiress. With one swift movement, he snatched at the object she was holding. She whirled to see him hold up her long, lavishly ornamented dagger. Laying the dagger before his master, he bowed and took his place at his side.  
  
"Especially, that you have found a way to recruit fledglings." observed Vorador, his eyes evaluating Raziel.  
  
"You are even more a threat to us since your...unfortunate behavior towards Umah." Vorador's lips twisted in a grimace of disdain, as he uttered the euphemism.  
  
"You simply fear for the life of your children, Vorador. Regardless of my respect for your fatherly instincts, I cannot accept the proposition of truce." Vorador's eyes narrowed into two glinting slits. "Your courtesy is redundant, Kain, as it cannot veil your true feelings towards me. Your hatred for anything that endangers your planned supremacy over Nosgoth has become paranoid." Kain laughed softly.  
  
"I appreciate your concern, old friend, but I have no interest in your diagnoses."  
  
"Don't you understand, Kain? Vampire immortal lives are at stake!" an outburst of rage from Vorador was indeed a rare show. Raziel's lips curved slightly in a smile as he noted an expression of disapproval on Damaris' face.  
  
"I am glad, Vorador, that you are finally sincere with me. I can understand your concern for your children, but you are clearly being overdramatic. My children are far weaker than yours, and it is a fact you are well aware of." Kain's answer produced silence. Vorador seemed to consider something, before he replied.  
  
"Very well, Kain. If you wish for war, then you shall have it. I hope neither of us will have to regret this decision. I repeat, Kain, we can live together in Nosgoth." Kain nodded his head, his expression still indifferent.  
  
"I accept your decision, Vorador. It is a worthy choice." Vorador gazed thoughtfully at Kain.  
  
"I shall give you time to ready yourself to war. Five years, no more, no less. You have created your children only to have them slaughtered by mine. I pity you, Kain."  
  
He remembered her now. One of Vorador's .brides.  
  
Raziel avoided her blow and made a counterattack, finding out even more about her abilities. Thus far, somehow he was able to keep up with her pace- even though her speed and agility outmatched his.  
  
"You are like dogs howling at the moon, fledgling. And have as much chances of gaining your prize...absolute power, isn't it what you wish for?"  
  
Damaris raised her hand palm up. Delicate tendrils of scarlet light issued from her palm, weaving into a intricate pattern. Raziel watched, fascinated, as the delicate rays grew brighter, more intense. Her hand closed into a fist and before Raziel realized the danger, a shaft of energy hit him, forcing him off his feet, throwing him into the air. As he crashed into a stone wall behind him, he felt the delicate tendrils crawl around his body, leaving every area of contact numb and paralyzed. Raziel struggled hysterically to stand up, but his body gave way to the magical surge. He closed his eyes, and to his horror he felt the hostile light forcing his mind... He felt her presence hammer at the doors of his mind...a magical siege of infernal intensity. The first assault shook him inwardly and he heard himself groan with pain. Dimly, he heard her voice.  
  
"Yield, weakling.", an order issued with such power of will that Raziel trembled. Kain, he called in a whisper, my God... 


End file.
